Measuring the Effect of Ecstasy

I spoke with a health conscious high school student last week who told me that she did not smoke, drink, or use drugs. She mentioned that she did use Ecstasy, but she thought it was so healthy that she didn’t really consider it a drug!

We do know that Ecstasy can damage brain cells critical to thought and memory, but measuring those effects accurately has been difficult.

According to an announcement by the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society, researchers in Spain have isolated for the first time a by-product of Ecstasy that is believed to cause some of the brain damage associated with the illegal street drug. This will help them measure the long-term neurotoxicity of Ecstasy in human users.

I am glad for this advance. Misinformation about Ecstasy abounds (both positive and negative)!

Our children deserve accurate information about the risks and benefits of Ecstasy.

Dr. Greene is the founder of DrGreene.com (cited by the AMA as “the pioneer physician Web site”), a practicing pediatrician, father of four, & author of Raising Baby Green & Feeding Baby Green. He appears frequently in the media including such venues as the The New York Times, the TODAY Show, Good Morning America, & the Dr. Oz Show.